A holistic study of neonicotinoids neuroactive insecticides—properties, applications, occurrence, and analysis

Among pesticides and foliar sprays involved in the treatment of seed, soil, and grass, also to crops, an important group is neonicotinoids. Neonicotinoid pesticides present similar properties with nicotine, but the mentioned compounds are less harmful for humans. Nevertheless, neonicotinoids are poisonous to insects and some invertebrates, which can act against insects’ central nervous system, leading to their death. Moreover, neonicotinoids can affect the reproduction, foraging, and flying ability of honeybee and other insects including pollinators. In the present study, some neonicotinoids, such as imidacloprid, acetamiprid, clothianidin, thiacloprid, and thiamethoxam together with their toxic effects, have been presented. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies these neonicotinoids as II and III class toxicity agents. Due to accumulation of these pesticides into the pollen of treated plants, especially due to their toxic effects against pollinators, the consequences of the occurrence of these insecticides have been discussed. Analytical aspects and methods involved in the isolation and determination of this class of pesticides have been presented in this contribution.